


Hummed Low

by Paper_Crane_Song



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: All the best cowboys have daddy issues, Episode Related, Episode: s01e12 Silent Enemy, Gen, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-27
Updated: 2018-02-27
Packaged: 2019-03-24 07:25:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13806339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paper_Crane_Song/pseuds/Paper_Crane_Song
Summary: Missing scene to season 1’sSilent Enemy. Malcolm isn’t too happy about Archer contacting his family without his knowledge and ends up confronting him about it.





	Hummed Low

**Author's Note:**

> This story was prompted by the letter that Malcolm records to his parents in _Shuttlepod One_ :
> 
>   _“Captain Archer claims you told him you weren't even aware that I was serving on Enterprise.”_
> 
>  It seemed to me that somewhere between _Silent Enemy_ and _Shuttlepod One_ , a conversation between Malcolm and Archer had taken place about Archer talking to Malcolm’s parents. This story is how I imagined that conversation might go, and takes place directly after _Silent Enemy_. 
> 
> Oh yes, the title is from the song by Odessa, and any feedback would be much appreciated! Thanks for reading.

He’d been intending to sleep in and had purposefully asked the computer to set his wake up call a full 30 minutes later than usual, but he’d woken early anyway. 

He lay there for a while, feeling simultaneously proud and annoyed that his internal body clock was working so efficiently, and then he swung his legs over and sat on the side of the bed. His gaze fell upon the leftover remains of the birthday cake.

A birthday cake. A pineapple one, at that. He’d basked in the warmth of their smiles and shared glee at the time, but thinking back on it, the whole episode confused him. Why should he be singled out for special treatment? He didn’t recall Captain Archer gracing anyone else with a birthday cake, though he happened to know there’d been several birthdays among the crew since they’d left space dock. It made him uneasy. Captains shouldn’t be going round giving birthday cakes to their subordinates, it just simply wasn't done.

 _And yet,_ a small voice inside him whispered,  _you liked it, didn’t you?_

Sod off, he told the voice, and got to his feet. Out of habit he activated his computer console. To his surprise there was a message flashing, a video recording from Earth. No doubt a consequence of those new subspace amplifiers Hoshi had redeployed.

“Computer, play message.”

The console filled with the image of his father, and he recoiled despite himself.

“Malcolm,” his father said by way of greeting. “Your mother and I have heard some disturbing reports.”

Off screen he heard his mother’s voice. “Stuart, is this really necessary -“

Without looking at her, in a gesture intimately familiar to Malcolm, his father kept his hand still and lifted his forefinger. His mother fell silent.

“Three days ago,” he continued, “your Captain took it upon himself to send a live transmission for the express purpose of enquiring after your culinary habits.” His tone was deceptively mild. “Since then, your mother received word from Madeleine that she’d been contacted by your ship’s secretary.”

Malcolm winced, although he could see why Maddie would be confused.

“If that wasn’t enough, we also heard from your Uncle Archie, your Aunt Sherry and your Aunt Joan.”

He groaned. It sounded like the Captain had contacted half his family tree.

“I mean, really, Malcolm. It’s not exactly proper, is it?”  
  
He agreed. It wasn’t proper. It wasn’t proper at all.

 _So why did you enjoy it?_ said the voice.

His father’s eyes narrowed at him and he tensed out of habit even though it was only a recording. “Why should the Captain be so interested with you, anyway? I do hope this whole affair isn’t some attempt on your part to curry favour with this man. A true Reed would let his service record alone speak for him.”

“Stuart,” he heard his mother say again, and he felt his face growing warm.

His father’s eyes flicked to hers and then back to the screen. His eyes were cold and scathing. “Happy birthday Malcolm.”

The screen went black.

Malcolm stared at it for a moment. Then he went through the motions of getting ready for his shift, mechanically putting on his uniform and shaving.

He threw the remainder of the cake into the waste disposal.

* * *

 

It was unfortunate that the first person he happened to meet after he left his quarters was Captain Archer, taking Porthos for his daily walk through the corridors.

“Morning Malcolm,” Archer greeted him warmly and fell into step with him. “Enjoy your lie-in?”

“Yes sir,” he replied automatically. 

“Well you deserved it, the wonders you and Trip did on those cannons -“

The Captain was showing every sign of continuing this conversation all the way to the bridge, and hurriedly Malcolm interrupted him.

“I believe you spoke to my parents, sir. I had a message from them this morning.”

Archer seemed momentarily taken aback by the abrupt change of topic, but he recovered quickly. “I did speak to them. Nice folks. They were asking about your role on the ship. They didn’t even realise you were onboard Enterprise.”

He sensed a faint air of disapproval in the Captain’s tone. “I did write to them,” he blurted out. “Twice, in fact. I suspect the letters might have got lost. They were moving house at the time.” Why was he even telling the Captain this? 

“I see.”

They reached the turbolift, and as Archer called the lift, Malcolm said, “Sir, I have to ask that you refrain from contacting my family again without my express permission.” In his embarrassment the words tumbled out, harsher and more formal than he’d intended. The Captain looked at him in surprise and he felt his face growing warm for the second time that morning.

“I appreciate the gesture,” he tried again lamely, but Archer interrupted him.

“No Lieutenant you’re right, it was an invasion of your privacy. I apologise. It won’t happen again.”

“Thank you sir,” he said, even as something in him faded a little. 

The turbolift arrived and they stepped in, Porthos at their heels.

“Bridge,” Archer said.

As the turbolift began to move, Malcolm felt the Captain’s eyes on him. 

“In the future,” Archer said, “if there’s anything else I need to know about you -” Malcolm glanced at him - “I’ll come ask you directly.”

He swallowed down his response and hesitated. Archer was regarding him with a mixture of amusement and something else, something he didn’t quite know how to define.

What was it with this man? he thought as the turbolift doors swished open and they stepped out onto the bridge. What more could the Captain possibly want to know about him that wasn’t already in his personal file?

And why, as he took up his post at the tactical station, why did the Captain’s attentions set such a warm glow within him?

 

_Finis_


End file.
